Warner Bros.
Christopher Nolan is really just that fuckin’ dude, huh? Outside of the likes of Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino, Nolan is probably the only director in Hollywood who is given a blank check to bring his ideas to life. A hybrid of the old Hollywood and the new, Nolan is a thinking man’s director who just so happens to specialize in Blockbuster filmmaking. It’s why he’s always messing with narrative timelines: a simple linearly told story is too rudimentary for a man as brilliant as Nolan. So, when the man refers to Tenet as the most ambitious film he’s ever made — and that includes the likes of Inception, The Dark Knight, and Interstellar — you have to take him at his word.
Luckily for us movie fans, the said filmmaking credibility that Nolan has accumulated over the last two decades is what’s keeping Tenet locked into its current July 17 release date, at least at the moment. While essentially every movie set to be released or in the midst of production was delayed in some way, shape, or form, Nolan and Warner Bros. have remained — somewhat stunningly — committed to their July 17 release.
The move — if feasibly possible — makes sense, as it will not only provide a much-needed boost to the movie theater industry, but it would represent a massive opportunity for Nolan and the studio, as they’ll effectively be the only game in town.
There’s also the possibility that Warner Bros. knows they have a massive hit on their hands, as it sure sounds like Tenet is the craziest shit Nolan has ever done, at least according to the film’s star, Robert Pattinson.
In a recent GQ Magazine profile, the soon-to-be Batman discussed the upcoming Nolan film and teased Tenet‘s “insane” action sequences:
What role is he playing? What’s the film about? Pattinson offers up no answers in a new profile published by GQ Magazine, but that might be because “Tenet” has such huge themes that the actor hasn’t even been able to grasp what everything in the film means just yet. As Pattinson told GQ, “Even if I had seen it, I genuinely don’t know if I’d be able to…I was just thinking, I just called up my assistant 20 minutes ago: ‘What the fuck do I say [about it]? I have no idea…Oh God, no. I can’t even bullshit my way through this.’ ”
What Pattinson did reveal is that Tenet had a crew of around 500 people and “250 of them would all fly together, just hopping planes to different countries.” The actor said, “This thing, it’s so insane. And in each country there’s, like, an enormous set-piece scene, which is like the climax of a normal movie. In every single country.” [via IndieWire]
Additionally, despite what the admittedly vague trailer might suggest, Pattinson says there’s “actually no time-traveling” in Tenet:
Nolan has already referred to “Tenet” as the most ambitious movie he’s ever made. The director has kept such a tight lid on the film’s plot that not even actors in the film like Michael Caine were allowed to read the whole script and figure out what the espionage drama is about. The Tenet trailer suggests time travel might be a factor in the film’s plot, but Pattinson did say about his character: “He’s not a time traveler. There’s actually no time traveling. That’s, like, the one thing I’m approved to say.” Even if there is no time traveling in “Tenet,” it’s clear something in the film involves a manipulation of time. [via IndieWire]
While I can’t speak for the rest of the film-loving population, I know that — IF IT’S SAFE — I will definitely be checking out Tenet on opening weekend. Nolan movies are events and they needed to be treated as such — they’re not meant for the small screen.
Tenet — which stars Pattinson, John David Washington, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, and Kenneth Branagh — is scheduled to hit theaters in the United States on Friday, July 17.
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Eric is a New York City-based writer who still isn’t quite sure how he’s allowed to have this much fun for a living and will tell anyone who listens that Gotham City is canonically in New Jersey. Follow him on Twitter @eric_ital for movie and soccer takes or contact him eric@brobible.com